...to no avail. Suddenly, slowly she nodded but once. Then the Glyph ravened into magnificence, blazing forth, blinding those present to the extent that all immediately raised their hands to protect their eyes, their faces twisted in grimaces of startlement.

At length the glory of the All dimmed it's overpowering strength, and normal lighting returned to the Dining Hall in the Great Sith Temple on Khar Delba. It shown upon Shayla, Terrin Danner and his men, and a pair of suddenly panting tuk'ata.

The chamber echoed with the silence of abandonment. And in another place, a bit of spacetime was taken up as a portal between not mere places in the curvature of space, but between the panoply of "might-have-beens" opened up, and the Chosen Daughter of the Sith stepped gracefully through. She took a step forward, her violet eyes now glancing with imperial leisure, a sweeping look which was at once almost apathetic yet managed to flare out and encompass the entirety of the Super Star Destroyer into which she had just made herself known.

Her gaze halted briefly upon the one called Rathal; she pinned him with her eyes, as a hawk pins a mouse. Then she turned them upon Aaron Barnes.

"I am Graysith," she said simply. "It would appear you will have to come with me."

With that she sent out a tendril of the All, binding Barnes to her pathway that he would follow...

...and with quiet calm carried him with her back into another dimension.

She allowed him to view Terrin.

"Speak with him now... and here... then I shall return you to Hornett."

She waited....

--------------------

What the hell just happened? Was this a dream?

Terrin didn't seem so surprised. He merely crossed his arms and waited.

"You...you are working with the Sith?" was all Aaron could get out.

Terrin frowned a moment at the apparent disbelief, realizing it mirrored his own usual suspiciousness. "To protect my wife and daughter," was all he replied.

Aaron gulped, and eyed his partner even more suspiciously.

Terrin's blue eyes turned a shade darker. "Aaron, you know me better than that, I'd hope," he said a bit sadly. Then, "Why have you been brought here?"

"There are those who seek Galen even now and have come to me. They said they were working for you. I knew they were Sith...I just knew it. Of course I didn't believe them when they said they were there to help."

Terrin's look turned more understanding. "You can believe them. And you can believe I'm doing all of this for the best, although it may appear otherwise. Tell them what they need to know."

Aaron watched his partner quitely for a moment; then, fully believing him, nodded. "You have my word."

"Thank you," Terrin said. Then he tilted his head to the side a bit. "You...know where she is?" he questioned, his look betraying not only just a bit of sadness.

Aaron nodded once again. "Yes Terrin, I do."

He dared not tell him Galen was unconscious...he would know soon enough...

--------------------

"Enough," she said in a whisper, the tone of her voice soft, it's meaning a command. Now, the undercurrent lessening... "Enough."

She blinked, stared meaningfully at Terrin, swept the others with her gaze. Came to a halt on Aaron.

"None other must know," she said, her voice even softer now but with a rancor's edge to it.

Then she took a small step back, made a mystic rune in front of him...

...and sent him abruptly yet smoothly back into his own, and now much smaller, reality.

[ 07-03-2002 01:24 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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Something wasn't right here. There was something about the tone in Aaron's voice that just didn't sit right with him--Terrin had always been able to tell when his partner just didn't want to tell him something. Either Aaron had found out that Galen was stuck on Coruscant with Admiral Actar, or there was something else going on...

For some reason, Terrin settled on the later explanation for Aaron's strange behavior. And that didn't put his mind at ease in the least.

If Galen was with Admiral Actar Aaron would have simply just said that. Then again, maybe Aaron was trying to somehow protect Galen because he was suspicious about the whole thing with the Sith. While that might be entirely possible, Terrin had every confidence that Aaron knew him well enough to trust in his intentions. Terrin knew Aaron understood just how much Galen meant to him and that he'd would never want any hurt to come to her...

He's hiding something that he thinks will hurt you, some shoulder-devil piped up. Terrin winced unconsciously at the thought, not wanting to examine the possible truths in it.

You can't worry about what you can't do anything about, his shoulder-angel replied. One step at a time. Get her back with you first, then go from there. You don't know what's going on yet; leave it at that. Trust them. Trust yourself...

Terrin sighed and closed his eyes a moment, recalling just how only a few short months ago--had it only been months?--he would never had been able to care about one single person aside from himself quite so much, let alone about her and a child that wasn't his own. A child that he found himself viewing as his own on more than just merely a mental level--on a gut level.

Let alone learning to actually trust in himself. He hadn't even been aware that this was an issue til recently; he'd been so able to cover it with self-assurance that he hadn't realized it'd had been a ploy to cover the real issue.

Until he'd found someone who trusted in him despite himself. Until he'd been able to first place his trust in her. Until he'd realized just how much she NEEDED him as much as he needed her.

It's not just about you anymore, Mr. Danner. You've known that for quite some time, but now you've FINALLY figured that out on a gut level, some little mental voice commented.

He nodded to himself, trying to beat back the rising concern that was coming regardless, all the while knowing he'd simply have to do the one thing that came to him with so much difficulty.

He'd simply have to trust. And mostly, he'd have to trust himself...

[ 07-03-2002 11:33 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Terrin Danner ]

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It was one thing to open a portal through the All in the mere fabric of space. But to do so between the myriad possibilites of existence, and to transport a being in two directions, was quite another matter. Mr. Barnes was really quite lucky he hadn't been stranded in an interdimensional mobius loop, or sent back into another "when." The Chosen Daughter was not yet a Clan leader.

She sighed a little, reached a slightly shaking hand out for a drink. The hand firmed as she raised the goblet to her lips; she cast a violet gaze over the rim of that goblet, boring into Terrin's eyes. His concern and trepidation was as clear as a bell to her....

She smiled to see it washed away by an influx of sudden and soul-confirming trust.

Good, she thought to herself, now placing the goblet back on the table. Then--

"We shall soon have her with us, Mr. Danner," she said smoothly, the merest glimmer of amusement in her eye. "You may... trust in that."

Then she closed her eyes and sat back against her seat, allowing the Glyph to raven back down into its resting state, now seeking to follow its stead by seeking a little rest herself. In this manner she sat quietly, but well aware of the others and any conversation which might possibly ensue.

--------------------

The flames extinguished as the portal began to close....

[ 07-03-2002 06:26 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Dark Lord Roan ]

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"we must check in with graysith, and refual the ship..." suggested recinis. To which narcolm simply nodded.

A few minutes later they had exited hyperspace, and aprouched the place where Khar delba SHOULD be. They then waited, hoping graysith could sense that they were there.

--------------------

In thus a manner she led the TIE fighter carrying Recinis and Narcolm enter into nowhere in realspace...

...but what was Khar Delba in another elseness.

Knowing the little fighter was now well on its way through the tiny opening at the Khar Delban magnetic pole, the Chosen Daughter leaned back against her seat again, the Glyph quieting, as she waited for the others to arrive.

--------------------

Lo-Ban had just enough time to disconnect his MPI, to receive the message: "Troubling news, but... No worries... You are to set up camp on Kyrik, and await another ship to leave the surface of Khar Delba... May the force be with you..."

Recinis noticed at once that graysith seemed weakened and aprouched her quickly.

"are you not well?" he said, clearly displeased that things seemed to be going from bad, to worse, to horrible.

Narcolm then aprouched and said. "Galan was taken from us...By a sith warrior...he found us in hyperspace, grabed her, and vanished..."

Then, they both waited to see what would happen next.

--------------------

She lay one hand upon the arm of her seat, raised the finger with the Claw.

"That would be Dark Lord Roan," she whispered, faltering briefly over the name, then firming. She straightened in her seat.

"It is this one who is our foe, who indeed is the foe the entire galaxy must beware. A Dark Lord of the Warrior Clan of the Sith, he is perhaps the most powerful enemy we have. It is he who has turned traitor to the destiny laid before me by my sire, Lord Aelvedaar; it is he who has stolen my child from me for dark designs of his own.

"And it is he against whom we must eventually do battle... whenever we discover where he has hidden himself. But not before he has disclosed exactly where it is he has taken my daughter. This information will be extremely difficult to retrieve from him. I have something of an idea, but--"

Now she shifted her gaze to the Claw of S'slan which gleamed upon her finger. For a long moment she remained silent. Then--

"It is because of him I have decided to ally myself with those present, and to further prove my truthfulness and trustworthiness to them by seeking out my blood sister and bringing her here, back to Khar Delba.

"But I have failed."

She paused, now rising to her feet, quiet and steady as a rock. The Glyph scintillated upon her forehead as she remained silent, now waiting to hear what others might have to say.

--------------------

Failed?

Dark Lord Roan had her...

Oh dear gods, this had to be a horrible, terrible nightmare.

He opened his mouth and nothing came out so he closed it and stood, pacing a bit, trying to calm the rising fear...

...fear which was not for himself, but for his wife.

They had waited too long...they needed to get her now, before things became even more horrible...

He whirled to face Graysith. "There just has to be something...something we can do..."

He trailed, biting his lip and trying to beat back the still-rising fear. That awful, horrible image of Galen, being held and "petted" by those Sith popped in his head.

"Please if it's in your power...help her..."

[ 07-04-2002 06:15 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Terrin Danner ]

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Dark Lord Roan, again. He'd nearly killed her once...

...and she'd been saved by her Sister.

But then, that was when he still was showing a pretense of love for her.

This was going to be difficult. Beyond difficult.

What could they do to get him to reveal the whereabouts of the child?

Her face a total picture of calm, Shayla listened to the ongoing conversation in the room, waiting to see just what might happen next...

...and calmly considering any possible roles she might play in what was yet to come.

--------------------

"It is not in our best interests to leap into overt conflict with Lord Roan before we are fully prepared," she at last said, not a little heaviness lacing her words. "It would be both futile and suicidal to confront him at this time, and to react with the heart and not with the mind.

"I know this sounds cold...."

Now she raised her head and pinned Terrin Danner with an icy violet gaze.

"If you so desire, I can bring you forth from this place that you may seek her out on your own. I greatly recommend you do not, however, even though restraint may result in... in a scenario involving your wife that I do not wish to contemplate."

For a long moment she remained silent, waiting to hear his reply.

--------------------

He was failing her...

Galen, I wish you could hear me...I'm trying so hard...

...so hard...

...I hope that you know that...

There just had to be something. He wouldn't give up. He COULDN'T.

But out on his own...without even truly knowing where she was...

...somewhere on K'eel Doba, it seemed.

But that wouldn't be enough. And even if he found her...

...she'd been taken right from under his nose by Lord Roan before. Who was he to think he could do anything to stop Roan now?

But then, could he really just not even TRY? After all, he'd been able to find her daughter...

...their daughter...

Little JhinDarra.

Oh dear gods Darra, if only she had your strength right now, I just KNOW you could help her...

He opened his eyes, surprised to find they were moist, not quite certain what length of time he'd been sorting through possibilities. "You once told me that the plans were simply made, and not so simply accomplished," he said, his voice heavy with worry and fright. "I just can't leave her alone to face him..."

He shuddered.

"...just as much as I know I can't help her on my own..."

[ 07-04-2002 08:20 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Terrin Danner ]

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She would not.

Now her eyes cut to Shayla, roved around the table, taking in the concerned features of Terrin's men, coming to a rest at last on the Terrin Danner's icy blue eyes. They swam with emotion; she lauded him for the strength he was trying to uphold.

She stiffened, ramrod straight. The Glyph flared, as she spoke the words Terrin formerly would never have dreamed would fall from the lips of a Sith or associate of one.

"Shayla," she suddenly directed. "You shall take Mr. Danner and what men will fit into Retribution, and assist him in any way you can in finding his wife.

"I-- I shall seek the wisdom and assistance of my Sire.

"And that we may be able to meet back upon this world when we both have succeeded in our quests..."

Now she fell silent, closing her eyes, concentrating with all her being upon the wonders which displayed themselves in the beauty of a molecule, the intricacy of an atomic nucleus. All of the Great Temple suddenly seemed to blink, as with a mighty shuddering groan the entire planet slipped once more from its hiding place in the Elseness.

Graysith staggered, one hand holding off Recinis' rush to assist her. For a moment she remained bent over, shaking with the effort she had just expended, drawing deep trembling breaths which finally seemed to stabilize themselves. At length her tremors quieted, and she straightened.

"M'wonBo'o," she called to her tuk'ata, and turned to depart.

She paused at the doorway in the back of the Dining Hall.

"The Fate of the Sith go with you, my friends," she said quietly. "And Khaandon as well."

Then she departed for where she had docked Chosen One, that she might set into motion those very Fates to which she had just sent forth her whole-hearted entreaty.

((OOC: Follow Graysith to the "Winds of Change" thread in the "Complete SW Universe" forum, thank you.)

[ 08-06-2002 12:38 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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"We shall depart for K'eel Doba immediately," she said at length, her voice indicating that she was in total control.

She stood, glancing around the room. "I don't have much room aboard my ship," she said, thinking. She looked to Lord Atma aka Narcolm "Lord Narcolm, I think your talents will be most needed on this mission," she said.

"But where exactly are you going to start, since this Lord Roan obviously can hide himself so well?" Shawn interjected.

Shayla looked to Shawn, then to Terrin, as if she were almost afraid to state the answer to that aloud. Terrin seemed to be considering something himself.

Suddenly he looked dead at Shayla, clear understanding somewhere in the depths of his emotion-filled blue eyes.

Shayla nodded in silent agreement. "Let's go then."

Motioning for her tuk'ata to follow, Shayla lead the way to the Retribution, her mind on the task ahead.

In moments they had boarded and were slipping through the small hole in the chronotic shield. Then, fully clear of the planet's own chronotic shield, Shayla drew a chronotic shield about the Retribution and directed the little Sith ship to K'eel Doba...

...and whatever fate might lie ahead.

--------------------

...this was a Sith ship.

Terrin had been able to at least ogle a bit at the workings of the ship he now found himself a passenger in, but it didn't last long. For as soon as he started to marvel over it, he realized that this was exactly what Galen's Jester II was like...

...which brought him right back to the worry and concern he'd been treading in ever since he'd heard Galen had been taken by Roan...

...and was unconscious.

He didn't know what he'd do if he lost her...

He sighed heavily, leaning back and closing his eyes and allowing a mental image of Galen to flash across his mind's eye and stay there for a long moment.

Then he forced himself into a fitful sleep. He'd need all the rest he could get...

(((OCC: Follow Shayla and Terrin and the gang to "Evil Among Us" in the Complete Star Wars Universe. Thank you!)))

[ 07-05-2002 02:52 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Mara1Jade ]

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Lo-Ban's hip vibrated yet again...
Khar Delba... what? She's gone...

Lo-Ban raced to the cockpit... "Back to Khar Delba!!"

Trel could understand the urgency... He took the lightwing to a halt, then plotted course for Khar Delba...

Lo-Ban's equipment started to vibrate yet again. 'When would this end!!!???' he thought to himself...

"Patience is a necessary tool of the force... You are to patrol the space surrounding where Khar Delba should be... perhaps a more covert method is in order... You should not hear from me again... that is, until you finish your mission... May the force be with you..."

Dropping her shield, she instantly flew her little ship through the small hole in the chronotic shield.

Only when she had the little Sith ship safely landed in front of the Sith Temple did she turn to see the horrified look in Terrin's eyes.

He was cradling Galen as if he could somehow lend her his strength in the motion.

"Come on," Shayla said quietly, standing. "There may be more we can do yet. But first we must get inside."

And with that she lead the way into the Temple which they had not so long ago departed from with her tuk'ata at her side and a Dark Jedi and terribly worried man holding his wife in her wake.

[ 07-05-2002 10:44 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Mara1Jade ]

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Oh my love, what did he do to you..?

In short while Shayla lead them back into the suites he and his men had been given. Terrin sat on the couch with her, afraid to even let her go, feeling completely helpless. His eyes were quickly moistening again despite his besst efforts to hold everything together. He closed them.

He pulled Galen more closely to him, gently rocking, trying to calm himself and at the same time trying to somehow convey to her that he was there.

"Hang in there, sweetheart, hang in there..." he whispered quietly, oblivious to the presence of anyone else, his mind only on the well-being of his wife.

Someone placed a hand on his arm.

His blue eyes snapped open, full of worry and fright and love. He cut them over to Shayla, who was standing in front of him. He could have been mistaken because he was very shaken up, but there seemed to be a little bit of sympathy in those blue-green eyes of hers.

"We need to make sure she gains some sustenance," Shayla said softly. "But keep talking to her. It's a medically known fact that even the unconscious can sometimes hear that which is around them...while the mind might be displaced the senses still function, and sometimes even the smallest things can get through and make a difference."

Terrin blinked in surprise then nodded just once.

Pull it together, buddy. You gotta be the strong one here. Galen needs you to do that. Just as much as she somehow needs to know that you are here...

Loosening his strong yet soft grip on her just a bit, he lightly brushed his lips on her forehead and laid her down, still sitting with her. He gazed at the features of her face, hoping that she was not in distress but extremely worried that she was.

"Galen, I'm gonna get you out of this somehow...trust me," he said, his heart aching as he strived to maintain calm. "Just keep fighting..."

He let his voice trail and ran a hand across the soft planes of her cheek. "Fight for me and Darra. And fight for yourself. I love you..."

[ 07-05-2002 11:15 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Mara1Jade ]

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"We need to make sure her body is maintained til Graysith returns. From there we'll figure out just what to do."

Terrin nodded then stood and followed Shayla into the adjacent bedroom. She motioned him to lay Galen down, and he did so. With the wave of her hand, the room flashed with a strange blink as she used the All to transform molecules of air beneath Galen's body into energy that would keep her sustained.

Then she looked to Terrin with a brief nod and departed to find the others still in the Dining Hall, leaving him with his wife.

She knew he wouldn't leave Galen's side for the for anything in the Universe.

[ 07-05-2002 03:33 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Mara1Jade ]

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He frowned at that as he returned Galen to the “energy bed” Shayla had made for her, wondering how a few of those bumps and scratches had occurred. Wiping her face with a cool cloth, he held one of her hands with his free one, hoping his gentle touch would somehow reassure, praying to every god he knew that he could get her back soon.

If there was truly a Khaandon, now would be a good time...

He wanted Darra to know her mother--she needed to know her mother--he was just sure of that. They’d overcome far too many obstacles to reach her for everything to fall apart here. He absolutely refused to give up on Galen now.

Sure as there’s Treasure on Roon he wouldn't give up...

He smiled a bit sadly at that thought, then returned his full attention to Galen, beating back any trace of darker thoughts. He didn’t want any of his negative vibes to get through to her.

He just hoped she somehow knew he was with her. And that she was safe.

Certain that the others would let him know if and when Graysith returned, Terrin continued to sit with his wife, unwilling to move, unwilling to give up.

For now all he could do was continue to take care of her, wait, and most of all...

...pray.

[ 07-11-2002 12:05 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Mara1Jade ]

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He smiled a bit at that realization. Those two were closer than perhaps they even realized...

Then he couldn’t help but frown as the gravity of this newest situation replayed itself on his mind’s eye.

What an absolutely horrible, dreadful thing to happen. He hoped someone could do something about this. Anything.

“Terrin, it’s Shawn,” he called, stepping in closer to the bedroom door.

“Come on in,” came the reply.

At that, Shawn stepped inside the bedroom to find Galen resting quietly with Terrin at her side, her right hand loosely held in his left. He was sitting in a chair next to her, leaning his head against the wall, eyes closed. A wave of compassion struck Shawn.

“If you need to take a break and move around a bit Terrin, I can...”

“I’m not gonna leave her,” Terrin said quietly, finally opening his eyes to regard the other man.

Shawn nodded in understanding, not too surprised by Terrin’s decision to not move so much as a millimeter. Shawn was also met with the worry and concern that Terrin wasn’t voicing; the worry and concern that he was doing a fairly good job of keeping just under the surface, close enough to still be felt but far enough away to not hinder anything that might need to be done.

Buddy, if you'd had some Force-skills, you’d have made a good Jedi, Shawn thought to himself.

Still, he knew that Terrin wasn’t too likely to share any of his concerns without being pushed, and that was something Shawn wouldn’t do. Terrin had been a smuggler if not by profession then by heart all his life, and he was rather used to deciding who he would trust and when. Shawn knew Terrin was well aware of whom he could trust in this situation, and he was also somehow strangely certain that Terrin would act on that knowledge only when necessary, although the ex-smuggler had struggled with this in the past. This was a balance Shawn dared not disturb. A balance that seemed to be newly developing, and one that would mature only if left to grow on its own.

“Well, if you need anything,” Shawn said.

“I’ll let you know,” Terrin responded.

The Jedi nodded at that, and turned to head for the sitting room. Behind him, Terrin suddenly said, “Shawn?”

He turned back. “Yes?”

“If I haven’t mentioned it,” Terrin started, “Thanks for sticking around.”

Shawn heard the unspoken words too. Even at the risk of compromising a lot of things you’ve always believed in.

“Consider it a favor from the Jedi long overdue,” Shawn replied. “I’m not always sure that what the Jedi believe in mirrors what I do any longer. Perhaps if they’d done what they should have regarding Galen and the baby...”

Shawn’s voice trailed. He knew Terrin understood his meaning.

A long moment passed with not a word between the two men; instead each one calmly regarded the other in an unspoken sort of agreement. Then Terrin spoke up, some of his usual self peeking through the otherwise steadfast and determined aura he was maintaining. “Stay out of my mind, Petrolu,” came the quiet jest, accompanied by the barest of smiles.

Shawn didn’t say anything at first, but rather gave a quick and precise salute. Then, “You’re the boss. I’ll be just outside if you do need anything, ok?”

Terrin nodded, once again leaning his head on the wall and gazing down on Galen’s motionless form, a brief wave of anguish passing across his features. Then he pushed all traces of worry behind the shield he was maintaining and closed his eyes again, no doubt to regain his composure and rest his eyes at the same time.

In the meantime Shawn quietly turned on his heel and stepped back out into the sitting room, staying just close enough to keep an tabs on things as well as to be available if needed.

[ 07-29-2002 11:36 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Mara1Jade ]

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